The Ducati Streetfighter 848 lives - Spared Axe for 2015!

Snapshot: The last of old school raw Ducati's spared axe for 2015!!

The Ducati 1098, was probably one of the most beautiful motorcycles ever designed. With Ducati and its expertise in creating new, brave and bold segments in the Motorcycle spectrum, what spawned out of the iconic 1098 and its smaller sibling the 848 Evo was the mean and ferocious Streetfighter Range.

The Streetfighter was never a big hit in the world market, becoming more of a cult classic machine amongst riders. Combined sales with the Hypermotard account for roughly 20% of Ducati’s annual sales, with the Hypermotard doing the majority of the heavy-lifting in that regard.

Because of that weak sales performance, it’s expected that Ducati will ultimately retire the Streetfighter line, rather than update it with the Superquadro engine found on the Panigale, or the Testastretta 11° DS / Testastretta 11° DVT engine found on the Ducati Diavel and Ducati Multistrada, respectively.

That might be a shame, because the Streetfighter segment is just now starting to see some good competition. The KTM 1290 Super Duke R has blown away many riders with its raw power and approachable riding style. The new Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 RR also impresses, with its 175hp and class-leading electronics.

Whether those machines encourage or discourage Ducati is a matter of debate, but we wouldn’t be surprised to see 2015 as the last year of the Streetfighter 848. The venerable naked bike is already on borrowed time.

For time being, the lovers of the true blue and whacky Streetfighter can rejoice, Ducati is showing the Streetfighter along its 2015 Model line-up at EICMA 2014.